Longtime underground enigma, the commanding and gruff voiced MC, Chief Kamachi, has made a successful career out of collaboration and 12” releases (over 16 of them! – see discography). Hold up, stop, rewind as The City Of Brotherly Love officially welcomes its next export to the world stage with his long-awaited solo debut, Cult Status, on Good Hands Records, early 2004. Often billed as an international man of mystery, hungry fans click and click, googling for fresh news on Chief while ransacking file-sharing sites for traces of new material. Chief’s latest can be heard on“The Popoff,” with Baby Blak, the B-side of DJ Sat-one’s single,“Aftermidnite.”
Chief quickly solidified a following in the late 90’s with his membership in indie supergroup, Army of The Pharoahs alongside Jedi Mind Tricks, 7L & Esoteric, Virtuoso and Bahamadia. With “The Deer Hunter,” from Jedi Mind Tricks’ huge-selling indie album, Violent by Design, the internet dissection of his spiritually complex lyrics had begun. Year by year, more wax dropped, from AG to Last Emperor to Maylay Sparks, rhyming partnerships were formed and Chief’s foundation was laid. 2002 saw a Philly-fied smash with Grand Agent and Baby Blak stomping all over the "Soldierz" 12”. From appearances on the Sway and Tech’s prestigious The Wake Up Show Vol. 5 compilation to this year’s “Divine Evil” with Outerspace and “Trinity” alongside King Honey, GOS and Hezekiah, the circle nears completion with Cult Status.
Keeping guest appearances to a minimum, Chief chose wisely, hand picking a veteran, Guru of Gang Starr, local battle-tested MC, Reef, and, rookie, label-mate Charon Don to share his 11 track debut. While not overtly underground, or commercial, the beats, lyrics and subject matter of Cult Status push hip-hop forward and away from such easy categorizations. On the horn-backed intro, Chief roars mightily, mystically over production by Sean “S.Dot” Francis (State Property’s “When You Hear That,” Freeway’s “Scratchin & Survivin”). Other beatmakers include rising talent, Pittsburgh’s E-Dan, Sat-One and Eastern Conference Records’ Mighty Mi. On the album’s first single, “The Best,” Philly’s own DJ Kwestion laces the beat while Guru and Kamachi trade soon-to-be classic bars. Come first quarter ‘04, Philadelphia moves to the forefront again with a bona fide locally masterminded industry-shaking release;Cult Status let’s the collabo-kid show and prove.
Philadelphia-based independent label, Good Hands Records released the acclaimed 12”, Elix’s “The Beast Within” featuring Chief Kamachi and Mr. Eon, B/W “Keystone Cops” featuring Charon Don.
A native of the mean streets of North Philadelphia MC Chief Kamachi started out rhymin' and spittin' like many of his contemporary wannabes and established artists who were getting regular air play promoting the Thug Life but Chief Kamachi also listened to and appreciated a variety of sources and genres especially the conscious Ol' School lyricists like the Last Poets and Gil Scott Heron and culturally conscious Hip Hop pioneers RaKim, KRS- One and Bran Nubian, Big Daddy Kane and X Clan. His personal quest for knowledge of self and kind led him into the Nation of Islam, a NOI sub-sect called The Five Percenters when he was around eleven years old. When he was eighteen he was initiated into the Yoruba Priesthood and most recently he has studied Ancient Kemetic metaphysical principles, divination and astrology which in turn produced an inner transformation and heightened consciousness that manifested in a new perspicuity, outlook and approach to his craft. As a result Chief Kamachi has emerged as one of the most articulate advocates for cultural awareness and rectitude in the Hip Hop community. He has spent the last few years successfully working with off the corporate radar screen groups like Army of Pharaohs, Jedi Mind Tricks and artists like Last Emperor and Maylay Sparks. He has appeared on over nineteen albums by various artists and now Chief Kamachi whose Kemetic priestly name is Ausu Ra Utcha Ab is set to launch a solo album Cult Status on the Good Hands Records independent label with a debut single set for early April release. Activist attorney Michael Coard had Chief Kamachi as a keynote speaker in his popular Hip Hop 101 class at Temple University's Pan African Studies Community Education Program a grass roots community education series that attracts young and old alike. Coard a successful trial lawyer, community activists and radio talk show host teaches the history and finer points of the sub-culture known as Hip Hop. Chief Kamachi held court lecturing, participating in a question and answer session and doing some impromptu freestyle.
Kamachi revealed the meaning of his name. "Ka in Kemetic philosophy means the personality, Ma is the first syllable of Maat Divine Law and Chi is the life force or Ra force." He elaborated on the importance of racial self-respect, knowing one's history and culture and the importance of music as a programming tool. "Right now you have the industry, the machine and the are designing music for our youth to listen to these days to keep them away from the truth about life and keep them away from their culture especially the inner city youth. Music is powerful in Yoruba music is governed by Oshun in Kemetic Philosophy music is governed by the deity we call Heru. In this culture you just get a mike and you can come up and say anything. To be a Griot you must speak things of importance, in order to teach our children we put it in songs because children learn faster in a state of trance when the music and message by-passes their state of consciousness." Kamachi stressed the importance of being a responsible artist. "The inner city is turned out right now in Hip Hop. A lot of these European businessmen are looking for the next thing, but there is a lot of power in the voice of this thing we call Hip Hop but there has to be some accountability. You got this rapper named Eminem going around saying 'My mom is a bitch' this and that, a Black Man would never do that. I don't care what we felt about our women we are not going to say "My mom is a bitch' to the world and then try to justify it. That's not nation building that's detrimental. Me, I'm going to take responsibility as far as bringing the truth to the youth and let them know you don't have to be ignorant. I wear my baggy stuff, whatever but I'm not no idiot. People look at us and judge us by the way we look and a lot of them are right because a lot of these guys get up here an they talk and hey have nothing to talk about." He explained why most of the songs were catered to females. "Why are the biggest songs in rap music catered to women? If you want to destroy a nation, you destroy the woman; you destroy the womb the child comes through, that's how you destroy a nation and that's what's going on. You got a platinum selling song that says 'My girl's a ho' and you got a million people reciting that, it's a mantra. These songs are not just songs. The videos are about gettin' our minds. I see it in my own children, they sing the songs and try to act them out."
Kamachi shared what he believes is his primary objective and mission. "For me it's deeper than videos and stuff like that. For me it's a way of get my people back, that's my main objective in life is to reclaim my African identify and bring children up the way they are supposed to be brought up. This whole single parenthood thing is outrageous, the way it's done is not working. The way to bring it back is through Hip Hop. I'm not looking to exploit the women, I'm not looking to exploit the brothers or anything; Im trying to build music wise and business wise. I never thought I'd see the day when we'd have something like this at a college, this is good." In keeping with his philosophy of conscious awareness Chief Kamachi eschews the corporate copy cat formula, trying to be like everyone else and doing what everyone else is doing. "Its' a formula and once you know that, it's a game. They sit and figure out how they can max out on you in the industry, in the machine. Me selling a million records versus someone on a major label is a big difference. I sell 50,000 record I make a quarter million dollars, I sell 50,000 records for MCA I'm not making nothin'. They (the artists on major labels) get twenty percent of the wholesale and they have to give their agent twenty percent of that and pay their lawyer ten percent. Me I get $8 off every album. All artists go through hard times but what helped me was my knowledge of self and what I knew about me and my history. That's what propelled me."
Chief Kamachi has aligned himself with the independent record label Good Hands Records and his latest project Cult Status will be released in a few weeks. When asked the best way for an artist to get his or her music out the Kamachi replied "It's about making good music. The best way is to have your own music and do it word of mouth because if the people want it the DJ's have to play it. But to get it in that position is ridiculous because there are a lot of greasy palms. People are spending a lot of money to get these records played. That's still a fight for me, but there is a way. You just have to be strong. It's bigger than me, it's about my people. My single will be out April 1 and my album will be out July 27."
Kamachi ist ein sehr guter MC. Endlich droppt er sein Debüt, freue mich schon sehr darauf!
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